Leap day came and went, and whether we like it or not, March is upon us and it’s time to apply for jobs and summer internships. Sure, it can be tedious and stressful to update resumes and cover letters, but you don’t want to be the one sitting at home while the rest of your friends are out getting ahead in their fields.
There are resources on campus that are readily available, and it is prime time to make headway on job searches. We’re not looking to sound like policing parents, but it really is necessary to get on top of future plans. For those who aren’t graduating, this isn’t the time to slack. Whether it’s at a nonprofit, a large company or a small start-up, internships are a valuable way of adding to your resume and figuring out what type of job and atmosphere you might be interested in after graduation.
Many applications are now open and many could be closing soon. If you are finding this stressful, remember that you are not alone in the job search, and the process will soon prove worthwhile. Reach out to the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development; it is a valuable resource readily available for students. They’ll go over your resumes, cover letters and even take professional photos for your LinkedIn profile so you can avoid cropping a picture from The Rat or from family dinner six years ago. And if you aren’t sure what you want to do, they will sit down with you and help you figure out what internships best suit your interests.
And while paid internships are nice, they are often few and far between. If you get an unpaid internship, look up the Sodexo Internship Fund. They offer up to $5,000 to help defray the costs of an internship, allowing you to intern wherever you like. Don’t let an organization’s inability to pay inhibit your ability to get a great experience.
If you are having trouble finding opportunities, don’t shy away from using the resources available to you. HireBing has numerous listings for jobs around the country. Open your mind up to positions back at home, across the country, or here in Binghamton — for those of you that are living off-campus, you’re paying rent over the summer anyway, so it makes sense to actually live there. Keep your options open. Internships provide you with one of the new opportunities in life to take a risk for a short period of time and find something that you could really enjoy.
Internships and jobs are looking at you, the person. They aren’t always looking at GPA or recommendations — they are curious about the job you are able to do. Seize this. When your procrastination presents you with a choice to either work on an English paper or spend the night applying to a job, do the latter. Think big picture — it can help you down the line.